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Fernando França Posted 20 years ago
Vocabulary
Reckon/Think/Suppose
Hi there!
I had an argument with a friend of mine about the use of the word "reckon". Around here in Brazil we often hear people saying "I reckon" meaning "I think", "I think so" or "I suppose". Which one is more usual: "I reckon" or "I think"? Using a "I reckon" one can sound like a non-native speaker or vice-versa?
Thanks!
I had an argument with a friend of mine about the use of the word "reckon". Around here in Brazil we often hear people saying "I reckon" meaning "I think", "I think so" or "I suppose". Which one is more usual: "I reckon" or "I think"? Using a "I reckon" one can sound like a non-native speaker or vice-versa?
Thanks!
Top answer
reckon is less general than think. Lewis> intransitive verb 4 a : ESTIMATE, JUDGE <thoroughly nice people, as the world reckons -- Mary Ross> b chiefly dialect : SUPPOSE, THINK <it's faith, I reckon, that's kept her goin' -- Ellen Glasgow> -------------
- reckon is less general than think.
- Lewis> intransitive verb 4 a : ESTIMATE, JUDGE <thoroughly nice people, as the world reckons -- Mary Ross> b chiefly dialect : SUPPOSE, THINK <it's faith, I reckon, that's kept her goin' -- Ellen Glasgow> -------------
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10 Answers
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reckon is less general than think.
they are equivalent in some contexts, but "reckon" has some dialectal coloring:
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reckon
transitive verb
4 a : to conclude on the basis of a calculation or estimation <reckon
that we lost a fifth of the oats through sprouting -- Country Life>
<reckons that his phone rings on an average th
they are equivalent in some contexts, but "reckon" has some dialectal coloring:
----------
reckon
transitive verb
4 a : to conclude on the basis of a calculation or estimation <reckon
that we lost a fifth of the oats through sprouting -- Country Life>
<reckons that his phone rings on an average th
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In British English, you hear "I reckon" much less often than "I think so".
Welcome to EF, by the way, Fernando!
MrP
Welcome to EF, by the way, Fernando!
MrP
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I think the word "reckon" is primarly used in the midwestern and southern parts of the United States; at least, that's the area that I associate it with. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.
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To me (a native American speaker), "I reckon" has a rural, old-fashioned or even uneducatedd sound to it -- I was surprised to find it frequently used by the characters in the Harry Potter books, so I thought maybe it is more generally used in England. Certainly "I think" is more neutral - no one it going to find it odd if a foreigner says "I think," but "I reckon" might sound as if you learned
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Khoff...I was surprised to find it frequently used by the characters in the Harry Potter books...Hello Khoff
I remember a post long ago, where a poster had compared the US and UK versions of a Harry Potter book, and found many changes (crisps > chips, etc).
So if yours is the US edition, maybe every "Um...I think..." has been changed to a
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Do you reckon?
For my experience in London, "I reckon" is very widely used throughout England and maybe the whole of the UK.
If you have read "I reckon" in Harry Potter, that's probably because the author is british!
For my experience in London, "I reckon" is very widely used throughout England and maybe the whole of the UK.
If you have read "I reckon" in Harry Potter, that's probably because the author is british!
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Fernando FrançaWhich one is more usual: "I reckon" or "I think"?Personal note: I never use "reckon". I don't even know anyone who uses it.
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I grew up in the deep south of the United States and it is frequently used. People in the northern US see the word as uneducated but in the UK the highly educated use it. The old south version of English is as close as the United States has left to Colonial English.
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